Crazy Mountain Kiss: A Sean Stranahan Mystery (Sean Stranahan Mysteries)
By: Keith McCafferty
Rating: 4 of 5
“Crazy Mountain Kiss” is the latest book in the Sean Stranahan series by Keith McCafferty; however, it is the first book I have read by the author. I often read books in the middle of a series in order to determine if the book can be read stand-alone or if it is necessary to read the whole series in order to enjoy the book. While I think this book can be read by itself, reading the prior books may add to the understanding of the relationships between the characters. That was the main area that I had some difficulty with while reading the book.
The story starts with the discovery of a very young woman’s body stuck in the chimney of a cabin in the forest. The body is fairly quickly identified as that of a missing sixteen year old, Cinderella. Cindy has been missing for more than five months but her death has only come within the last few weeks. At the sheriff’s suggestion, Cindy’s mother hires Sean Stranahan to investigate the events that led up to her daughter’s death.
There are a great number of characters, most of whom have a knowledge of each other and their past seems to shape their current relationship and reactions to one another. This is where I missed having the full base of information. I simply had to accept that someone might seem close to someone else or might be able to share ghoulish jokes. It made it a little difficult at first but within about a third of the book, I was able to understand enough that I began to enjoy the book more than I thought I would. There are a number of characters who are more than slightly odd and who have habits and associations that would be frowned on by a good portion of society. While they were interesting to read about, I’m not sure that many of them would individuals I would want to get to know.
The women in the book are portrayed as fairly tough but with softer sides that show only on occasion. The men seemed more emotional and more fully developed. The exception to this is the sheriff, Martha Ettinger. She was a much more interesting character than Sean for me as a reader and was the one individual I was left wanting to know more about. By the end of the book; however, it was evident that the story was about Sean though his relationship with Martha was a big part of the book.
The whodunnit was not that difficult to figure out though the why they did it was more of a surprise to me. Even though I had figured out part of the ending, I was still able to enjoy the unveiling as the author did it with considerable skill. While I am not generally drawn to books about fishing, I didn’t dislike the portions of this book that spoke at length about the sport. I do like mysteries set in the wilds of states that are less populated, so that part of the story was very appealing to me.
It was an interesting book and one that I believe would appeal to both men and women, though I think it is written primarily from a man’s point of view. This is a book that I would recommend to anyone who appreciates a mystery set in the wilds and who likes kind of oddball characters.
I received a complimentary copy of this book via the publisher.
“Crazy Mountain Kiss” is the latest book in the Sean Stranahan series by Keith McCafferty; however, it is the first book I have read by the author. I often read books in the middle of a series in order to determine if the book can be read stand-alone or if it is necessary to read the whole series in order to enjoy the book. While I think this book can be read by itself, reading the prior books may add to the understanding of the relationships between the characters. That was the main area that I had some difficulty with while reading the book.